Pecorino Romano

As irreplaceable in southern Italian cuisine as Parmigiano-Reggiano is in northern Italian cuisine, this pasteurized sheep milk cheese has a bone-white paste that sometimes tinges on a creamy yellow. Genuine Pecorino Romano is made in the Roman province where sheep milk is more abundant. This cheese is dry and crumbly with an oily sheen and a painted black rind, which is inedible. It has a sharp, aged flavor that is delicious grated or shaved over vegetables, pasta, and rare beef.